Department of History

Welcome

The Department of History offers students a challenging yet flexible program of study that emphasizes both the distinctiveness and the utility of the historian's craft. Our program is distinctive in that all history courses focus not only on the past's exciting events and developments, but also on the manner in which historians gather their evidence and reach their conclusions.

Successful Americans have long understood that a knowledge of history offers opportunities to make better decisions today. A history background can provide important advantages in analyzing contemporary events and trends. Whether in business or in service, good solutions today depend on a clear understanding of yesterday. By learning from the past, we can improve the future. Even in daily life, history not only informs but instructs. The skills of the historian – critical thinking and the ability to conduct documentary research – can influence the way we read a newspaper, shop for a car, trace our family lineage or evaluate the performance of our institutions.

The Department of History at the University of Dayton is vibrant and active. We have been particularly busy in the past year with our involvement in the University's new Common Academic Program. Read about what this all means, and keep up with everything our faculty, students and alumni are doing in our latest newsletter.

We sponsor a chapter of Phi Alpha Theta, a professional society whose mission is to promote the study of history through the encouragement of research, good teaching, publication and the exchange of learning and ideas among historians.